Stupid Questions and Other Things That Don't Exist
by The Black Sluggard
Summary: In which there is drunken rumination on the supernatural, and apparently everyone's adorable. Follows "Evidence to the Contrary". Slash, Ryan/Esposito.


"Hey, Javi... You ever wonder what else might be out there?"

"Hmm?"

The lazy hum barely qualified as a response, just a sleepy whisper of warm breath against Kevin's ear. Nuzzling his partner's hair, Javier roused out of his almost-doze trying to remember when exactly Kevin had gotten that close... He was more or less straddling Javier's lap now, leaning over him with his knees sinking into the cushions of the couch on either side, balance steadied only by a loose grip on Javier's shoulders. Then Kevin had come in close and—

Right. He'd asked Javier a question. Thankfully, Kevin saved him from having to ask what it was.

"What else is out there?" Kevin repeated, sitting back a little so he could look Javier in the eye. "Like, so...if werewolves are real, what else?"

_Oh_. "No."

Kevin frowned skeptically at his short answer. His partner's weight shifted somewhat uncomfortably, forcing Javier to spread his legs a bit more to distribute it evenly over his thighs.

"You don't think there's _anything_ else weird out there?" He asked after a moment. He seemed almost disappointed.

"No..." Javier allowed, hands moving to Kevin's hips to adjust his position a little more. "I just never thought about it."

"Oh." Kevin seemed slightly soothed by that answer.

The problem, Javier decided, was that Kevin had pulled away. Things had been much better when they were closer. Tugging gently on the collar of his shirt, Javier drew him back down, pressing a soft kiss to his warm, slack lips. He tasted like tequila and cinnamon hearts, which Javier thought was a very nice addition to his usual flavor. Except Kevin seemed...distracted.

"So, uh, what _do_ you think might be out there?" Kevin asked again suddenly, after far too short a time.

Javier let out a weak snort, letting his lips brush lightly over the hot, rosy flush spotting Kevin's cheek.

"I don't know, Kev, it's your question," he finally said, breathing an exasperated sigh against Kevin's skin as he nosed his way in toward his neck. "What do _you_ think might be out there?"

And Javier really wished he hadn't asked because Kevin leaned back again thoughtfully, dragging the warm scent of his skin out of reach. Javier just managed to bite off the frustrated noise in his throat as something other than a growl. Oblivious, Kevin proceeded to give the question—his _own_ question—serious and detailed thought.

"I don't know..." He trailed off absently, coming back to himself with a vacant blink. "Oh. Aliens maybe? Or vampires, or... I don't know."

"Nice." Javier responded, settling back against the couch with a soft frown. As he idly picked flecks of glittery red confetti off his partner's shirt, he reassured himself that he was _not_ sulking. "Maybe think of something Castle _hasn't_ freaked out over yet."

Kevin's shoulders drooped just a little, and Javier felt a little guilty when his partner let out a soft sound that was almost a whine. His eyebrows drew together in concentration that brought out that little line on his forehead. Usually Javier thought it was kind of cute, but at that moment he almost wanted to see if it was physically possible to kiss it smooth.

"Faeries?" Kevin said uncertainly after a few moments.

Javier gave a startled blink, and had to read back over his train of thought to the rest of the conversation before the word could make any kind of sense.

"Uh, you're right," he managed finally, "He hasn't done that one yet..."

The corners of Kevin's lips dipped down in a troubled frown.

"Don't you think that's kind of unfair, Javi?" Kevin asked, fingers leaving their perch on Javier's shoulders to fiddle idly with the loose tails of his undone tie. "I mean, we make fun of him, then we spend the full moon up at his place? That kind of makes us hypocrites."

Javier had to admit that was a fair question.

"No," he said after a moment's thought, shaking his head.

"No?"

"Yeah, no." Javier argued, dragging Kevin's fingers away from his tie. Tugging it free of his partner's collar he draped it over the arm of the couch, ridding them both of the distraction. "We don't make fun because Castle's ideas are ridiculous. We make fun of Castle because _he's_ ridiculous."

"Oh," Kevin said softly, lips pursed slightly as he puzzled over the reasoning. Finding no fault in it apparently, he eventually let it go.

"So..."

"So?" Javier asked.

Only half his mind was still focused on the conversation, and that was still half a mind more than Javier would have liked. The other half was thinking about Kevin's knees, and Kevin's thighs, and how much he really would like it if Kevin would pay more attention to what Javier's hands were actually up to. And they had _both_ clearly had too much to drink, otherwise there would be other problems badly in need of addressing at this point.

"What do you think might be out there?" Kevin asked again.

Releasing a soft huff of breath Javier let his head fall back against the couch, and actually thought about it. Maybe, if he answered, Kevin would finally drop it and they could focus on more important things... His mind drew a long, dark blank, and it was a while before he could find something that didn't sound absolutely ridiculous, even in the context of the conversation.

"I dunno, zombies?" Javier drug out finally, shaking a loose shrug.

"Zombies?" Kevin asked uncertainly.

"Dude, I don't know." Javier groaned, just about ready to give up. "You're the one who thinks about that shit."

"I don't think there's zombies, Javi." Kevin reasoned sharply. "People would have noticed."

"Oh, you mean the way they _clearly_ notice werewolves?"

"Shut _up_," Kevin mumbled, pushing a weak shove into Javier's shoulders. "That's totally different."

A short beat passed. Finally Javier lifted his hands, ostensibly to smooth out the front of his partner's shirt and brush away the rest of that ridiculous glitter.

"There _could_ be zombies," he argued quietly. _Frowning_. He refused to acknowledge he was even capable of a pout, whatever Kevin said.

Kevin giggled. Honest to god _giggled_.

"Sure, Javier." He scoffed. "Maybe in another _universe_."

"Hey, maybe," Javier challenged with a smirk, "Maybe we're both zombies in some other universe."

Grabbing a handful of Kevin's shirt Javier hauled him in close, biting his neck playfully.

"_Huh_."

"Huh?"

The interjection was a bit startled on Javier's part, because he had kind of forgotten Castle was there. Or that they were at Castle's apartment at all... But then it had been Castle's Valentine's Day party, so that made sense. Javier leaned to the left a bit—almost toppling Kevin—and saw that Rick and Kate were both watching them. Though it was just the four of them—_just pack_, the secure feeling in the back of his brain told him—the unexpected scrutiny still made him feel a little vulnerable, and he pulled Kevin in even closer. This amounted to more or less squashing the other man against his chest, and Kevin let out a muffled, confused sound of surprise.

Javier glared. Then he glared even harder, embarrassed once he realized Castle hadn't even been talking to him.

"Hm?"

Kate sat a little loosely in her chair, but it was plain from just a glance she was more sober than any of the three of them. Castle leaned over to answer, looking half like he was about to fall out of his chair—though from the way she looked more amused than annoyed with him, she had obviously enjoyed herself plenty as well.

"This is the longest conversation I've heard out of them since Kevin was bitten." Castle said with a smirk, still watching them from the corner of his eye. "We need to get them drunk more often."

Kate tilted her head slightly as she followed his gaze, seeming to consider.

"Yeah," she agreed finally, with a soft smile, "They're kind of..."

"Hilarious?" Castle guessed.

"Actually," Kate admitted, "I was going to go with adorable."

Javier felt vaguely like throwing something at one of them, but he honestly didn't know which one he hated more at that moment.

"Oh, good," Castle said with a slow blink. "I thought that was just me."

"Don't worry, you're adorable too, Castle," Kate offered with a wry smirk.

"Aw, thanks Kate." Castle said, grinning brightly. "And you're—"

He cut off as Kate raised a warning eyebrow.

"Adorable."

And Javier was just about to say something to defend their pride when Kevin's mouth suddenly covered his. For a moment all he could think was, _Now? Really? _That moment slid past very quickly, however, as his hands found Kevin's hips, and Kevin's arms looped around his neck, and Javier once again forgot about the other two members of their pack entirely.

"Taxi?" Kevin asked him breathlessly, thirty seconds later.

"Taxi," Javier agreed hoarsely. Everything else would have to wait.


End file.
